Focused Hospitality
Scripture: Luke 10:38-42
They say the average person makes about 35,000 decisions a day. These decisions range from big ones, such as the ones you make at work, to small ones, such as the ones you make as you get dressed in the morning. Part of the challenge in the Christian life is deciding which ones deserve our utmost and which ones we can choose not to stress over. In this story, we see Martha unduly stressed over the wrong decisions. She has invited Jesus over to demonstrate hospitality and suddenly she finds her life overly busy and, as it says in verse 40, “distracted with much serving”.
Perhaps that accurately describes your life right now. Maybe you’re juggling 20 things at once between work, school, and family life, and you’re not sure how much longer you can keep it up. Sadly, when we find ourselves in these seasons, what is often the case is that our church life is the first on the chopping block. Despite this, Jesus’ admonishment to Martha isn’t the fact that she is serving but that it has become a distraction for her. Jesus wants to draw Martha back to what the purpose of this gathering was all along; him. It’s almost as if once we lose focus of what truly matters, our serving goes out of alignment and that’s when we find ourselves biting off more than we can chew. This is significant because what this means for many of those who serve in the church is that it is possible to serve Jesus while missing out on him entirely.
Contrast this with Martha’s sister Mary, whose focus is solely on Jesus. She finds herself sitting in the place of honor closest to Jesus at his feet while he teaches. This was also a posture of placing oneself under another person’s authority. In the words of Jesus, this is the “good portion” out of every other portion of life available. We can dedicate ourselves to all different kinds of pursuits in life but none will put our lives or our “doing” into alignment the way that making Jesus our focus can. Corrie ten Boom once said, “if the Devil can’t make you sin, he’ll make you busy.” I think this is an accurate description of what is plaguing our modern society today. We find ourselves either constantly distracted by our handheld devices or hurrying from one thing to the next because there isn’t enough time in the day. Psychologists have called this an epidemic of “hurry sickness”. When it comes to hospitality, this means that we’re often too busy worrying over every single detail that we don’t have the opportunity to enjoy any hospitality for ourselves.
If that’s you, then hear the words of Jesus to you today. He is calling out your name with tenderness and care. In the Semitic language, how one communicated intensity and passion was by repetition. This is how Jesus wanted to address Martha’s busyness. This is meant to convey his care for what you do. It’s not as though what you do is unimportant. He appreciates your effort and your work. Remember, what he cares most about though is your focus. He knows that if He truly was your focus then you wouldn’t be stressed over every detail of your life but rather you would find the time to simply sit at his feet too. To listen to what he has to say to you and let his words soak in your heart. This is the “good portion” in life that God wants for each of his children and it is a peace that is possible for every disciple of Jesus if we’re willing to let go of the distractions. If we’re willing to lay aside the things that steal our attention away from what truly deserves our focus.
Study questions:
When you look at your life, which character in the story does your life reflect most? Mary or Martha?
In what ways can even serving in the church get in the way of the purpose of the church?
How can we better practice a hospitality that keeps Jesus as its focus?
What does “sitting at Jesus’ feet” look like for you?
What distractions is God calling us to let go of?
